To all the Windows 8 haters out there, we feel your pain! The update might be too little, too late for some, but if you're ready to accept a Win 8.1 fate, our guide will get you started

Sometimes we wonder if Microsoft didn’t actually build a new OS so much as a Frankenstein that its customers could direct years of pent up anger, frustration, and fear onto. For example, just hint that Windows 8.0 ain’t that bad on the Internet, and some Windows users will react as if you keyed their mint ’64 Chevelle Malibu and kicked their dog with your steel-toed boot. To say you’ll get a beat down of YouTube-able proportions is an understatement of people’s rage at Windows 8.0 today.

Note: This article originally appeared in the January 2014 issue of the magazine.

The third time might just be the charm for Microsoft's laptop/tablet hybrid

A bigger/sharper screen, the option for beefier specs, and an improved keyboard cover herald Microsoft's new Surface Pro 3. With the new Surface, the Redmond-based company has both tablets and laptops (specifically, the Macbook Air) in their sights.

We put six hard drive cloning and backup utilities under the microscope

Cloning and disk-imaging software is infinitely useful for end users and IT managers alike. Whether you’re just making backups of a single partition, blasting full images to dozens of systems across a network, or creating virtual machines for a testing environment, cloning software has got you covered. Not all cloning applications and utilities are created equal, though. There are numerous options available, at various price points—including free—with a diverse range of integrated features.

It’s not black and yellow, but we think we know what it is

Some rigs are built to stand out. Others are purely functional with little to no attention given to aesthetics or design. Adam Birli’s Black Gold stands somewhere in between the two extremes. It’s sexy, but understated; flashy, and stealthy at the same time. It’s no Orogenesis, but it’s beautiful in its own way. Beautiful enough, that it’s worthy of being this month’s Rig of the Month.

Dropbox vs. Western Digital My Cloud

Every power user has hopped on the cloud storage bandwagon because it’s awesome having all your files synced to any Internet-connected machine, but there are two problems. First, we have some privacy concerns; second, it’s ridiculously expensive. WD’s new My Cloud addresses both of these issues by being dirt cheap (by comparison) and by storing all your data on a “personal cloud,” also known as a NAS drive. It’s time for a clash of the clouds!

Note: This article originally appeared in the january 2014 issue of the magazine.

We compare the game’s low, medium, and high settings with comparison pictures and video

Welcome to Maximum PC's new "graphical analysis" feature where we do a deep dive analysis on a video game's graphics options comparing its low, medium, and high settings along with any other graphical bells and whistles it may offer. In this on-going feature we will provide picture and video comparisons to the PC's biggest games. We know you’re probably either equipped with a bad-ass rig or on the cusp on upgrading so we wanted to give you a visual glimpse of what your system/future system might be able to handle playing certain titles.

For our inaugural story, we decided to go with the recently-released Dark Souls 2.

We know the Radeon R9 290X can go head-to-head with a GTX Titan, but can this extra-long, hot-running GPU hang in a small form factor chassis like a Titan can?

For a while now, we’ve considered doing another Build It with a "shoebox" case like the Silverstone Sugo SG08 we used in the June 2013 issue. If you recall, we wedged Nvidia's GeForce GTX Titan into a mini-ITX system, and it provided a surprising amount of firepower to a system that was remarkably small. The Titan is able to hang in a tiny chassis due to Kepler’s efficiency, making it highly effective in close quarters. Fast forward to the present, and AMD has released the Radeon R9 290X, which performs about as well as a Titan but costs around $550—nearly half the price. However, the R9 290X runs a bit hot under the collar, typically at 94 C, and is a half-inch longer than the Titan, as well. Though it’s certainly competitive with Titan in benchmarks, we wondered whether the R9 290X can withstand the rigors of a small form factor build. To find out, we stuffed it into a new shoebox chassis from Cooler Master, and added a new Corsair closed-loop cooler designed specifically for small enclosures. We added a modular power supply from Seasonic that is also designed for SFF builds, so this should be one badass box

Note: This article was originally featured in the February 2014 issue of the magazine.

Replayability is the name of the game here

Imagine you are stranded on a desolate island, isolated from the rest of humanity with only a PC for company and some games to choose from. What PC games would you choose? League of Legends? Dota 2? Well tough luck, because this island unfortunately does not have Internet (but somehow provides power via generators...or something). What now?...

How will you fill your time? What would be the games you pick to occupy the days, weeks, and possibly years before your rescue?

A few awesome VLC tricks you may not know about

For most video-watching aficionados, VLC is an essential piece of software. The open-source app is well known for being a fantastic movie and music player, but there are a few clever tricks that can help you get a lot more out of the media player. We gathered seven fun and useful VLC features, that will help you get the most out of the media player.